Full curriculum details

Full curriculum details

Metrology and Data Analysis

Teacher:

Contact: david.boilley@ganil.fr

Course Structure:

The course (3 CFU) is taught in english through lectures (10h) and exercice sessions (12h).

Attendance of Lessons:

Attendance at the course is compulsory 

Detailed Course Content:

The covered subjects are the following:

  1. International standardisation in metrology (SI, VIM, GUM…)
  2. Uncertainty evaluation, including Monte-Carlo methods
  3. Inverse problem and Bayesian analysis
  4. Hypothesis testing and application to the noise and signal problem
  5. Learning from data: least squares fitting and ordinary linear regression

Text references :

  • International standards:
    • International Vocabulary of Metrology;
    • Guide to the expression of uncertainty in measurement and its supplements;
    • Eurachem/CITAC guide: Quantifying Uncertainty in Analytical Measurement;
    • Determination of the characteristic limits (decision threshold, detection limit and limits of the coverage interval) for measurements of ionizing radiation (ISO 11929).
  • Books
    • Les Kirkup and Bob Frenkel, An Introduction to Uncertainty in Measurement, Cambridge University Press;
    • D. S. Sivia, Data analysis. A Bayesian tutorial, second edition, Oxford University Press;
    • Yadolah Dodge et Valentin Rousson, Analyse de régression appliquée, Dunod ;
    • Samprit Chatterjee and Ali S. Hadi, Regression Analysis by Example, Wiley;
    • Jacques Goupy, La méthode des plans d’expériences – optimisation du choix des essais et de l’interprétation des résultats, Dunod ;
    • Douglas C. Montgomery, Design and Analysis of Experiments, Wiley.

Detailed lecture notes and tutorials with solutions are also provided by the professor on the dedicated webpage https://ecampus.unicaen.fr/enrol/index.php?id=541886

Course planning:

The detailed calendar of the course and classroom information is updated daily on the ZIMBRA calendar of the students after enrollment

Learning Assessment Procedures:

Assessment takes the form of a final written exam of a duration 2:00, consisting of practical exercices based on the tutorials worked out in the classroom. Examples of previous exams are also given on the course webpage.

To pass the semester, you must obtain an overall average of at least 10 out of 20 in all teaching units. The individual marks are averaged with a coefficient proportional to the CFU of the teaching unit.

If you have not passed a course or course unit, a make-up session is organised. However, if you have passed one or more courses or teaching units, you retain your result and do not have to retake these units.

Ion Sources and Beams

Teacher:

Contact: deroubin@lpccaen.in2p3.fr

Course Structure:

The course is taught in english through lectures (2 CFU, 10 h).

Attendance of Lessons:

Attendance at the course is compulsory 

Detailed Course Content:

The aim of the course is to give to students an overview of the standard techniques used at accelerator facilities to:

  • Produce high-intensity stable ion beams,
  • Accelerate them to energies relevant to the production of radioactive ions by means of fusion-evaporation and fragmentation reactions,
  • Separate them from contaminants using in-flight separators,
  • Obtain high-purity radioactive ion samples at very-low energy by means of gas cells, resonant laser spectroscopy, high resolution mass separators, and ion traps,
  • Perform high-precision beta-decay and mass measurements.

The introduction to the course gives the physics motivations of fundamental interaction studies with low-energy beta decaying nuclei. Two representative radioactive isotopes, namely 98In and 30S, are then used as examples and guide lines to describe the state-of-the-art techniques that are currently and plan to be implemented at the GANIL-SPIRAL2 facility to produce and study them.

Text references :

Materials are provided by the professor on the dedicated webpage https://ecampus.unicaen.fr/enrol/index.php?id=54188

Course planning:

The detailed calendar of the course and classroom information is updated daily on the ZIMBRA calendar of the students after enrollment

Learning Assessment Procedures:

The course evaluation consists in the oral presentation of a simulation work performed by the students using the LISE++ code, used worldwide to evaluate the production rate and purity of radioactive ions at in-flight separator facilities.

To pass the semester, you must obtain an overall average of at least 10 out of 20 in all teaching units. The individual marks are averaged with a coefficient proportional to the CFU of the teaching unit.

If you have not passed a course or course unit, a make-up session is organised. However, if you have passed one or more courses or teaching units, you retain your result and do not have to retake these units.

Fundamental Interactions

Teachers:

Contact: hayen@lpccaen.in2p3.fr

Course Structure:

The course is taught in english through lectures (2 CFU, 15 h).

Attendance of Lessons:

Attendance at the course is compulsory 

Detailed Course Content:

  1. Introduction
    1. Historical review of the Standard Model
    2. The discovery of particles and fundamental bosons
    3.  Fundamental fermions and bosons in the Standard Model
  2. Properties of Fundamental Interactions
    1. Introduction
    2. The gravitational interaction
    3. The electromagnetic interaction
    4. The weak interaction
    5. The strong interaction
  3. Invariance Principles and Conservation Laws
    1. Introduction
    2. Invariance in classical and quantum mechanics
    3. Continuous transformations: Translations and Rotations
    4. Discrete transformations: Parity, Charge Conjugation, Time Reversal
    5. CP and CPT
  4. The Electromagnetic Interaction
    1. The interaction between electric charges and the EM coupling constant
    2. Concepts of quantum field theory
    3. Transition probabilities in perturbation theory (reminder)
    4. The bosonic propagator
    5. Cross-sections and lifetimes
    6. Feynman diagrams
    7. Examples of electromagnetic processes
    8. Tests of QED
  5. The Weak Interaction
    1. Introduction
    2. Nuclear beta decay and neutron decay
    3. The Fermi coupling constant from muon decay
    4. Lepton families
    5. Parity violation in the weak interactions
    6. Universality of the weak Interactions
    7. The six quarks and the Cabibbo–Kobayashi–Maskawa Matrix
    8. Tests of the Standard Model in beta decay
  6. The Strong Interactions at Low Energies
    1. Hadrons and quarks
    2. Proton-Neutron symmetry and isospin
    3. Low energy hadron-hadron collisions
    4. Antibaryons
    5. Production and decay of strange particles
    6. Classification of hadrons made of u; d; s quarks
  7. CP Violation
    1. The matter-antimatter asymmetry problem
    2. Discovery of CP violation
    3. Formal description of CP-Violation
    4. CP and T violations
    5. Precision measurements at low energies
  8.  Physics beyond the Standard Model
    1.  Introduction
    2. Grand Unification and proton decay
    3. Supersymmetry
    4. Composite Models

Text references :

Materials are provided by the professors on the dedicated webpage https://ecampus.unicaen.fr/enrol/index.php?id=541930

Course planning:

The detailed calendar of the course and classroom information is updated daily on the ZIMBRA calendar of the students after enrollment

Learning Assessment Procedures:

Assessment takes the form of a final written exam of a duration 1:30, with practical exercices and questions relating to qualifying points of the various parts of the program. To pass the semester, you must obtain an overall average of at least 10 out of 20 in all teaching units. The individual marks are averaged with a coefficient proportional to the CFU of the teaching unit.

If you have not passed a course or course unit, a make-up session is organised. However, if you have passed one or more courses or teaching units, you retain your result and do not have to retake these units.

Dosimetry and Radiation Protection

Teachers:

Contact: lienard@lpccaen.in2p3.fr, maxime.henri@cea.fr

Course Structure:

The course (6 CFU) is taught in english through lectures, tutored exercices (20 h) and teaching interactive laboratory classes (15 h). 

Attendance of Lessons:

Attendance at the course and practical lab sessions is compulsory 

Detailed Course Content:

  1. Introduction
  2. Calculation of doses in external exposure situations
    1. a. Definitions and important physical concepts
    2. b. Simple cases (point-like sources)
      1. i. Dose calculation for photons (X, γ)
      2. ii. Dose calculation for electrons
      3. iii. Dose calculation for neutrons
      4. iv. Corrections and limits
        1. 1. Very short distances : limits of the 1/d² law
        2. Continuous spectra (β and X-ray generator)
        3. Attenuation of photons: Buildup factors
    3. Cases of extended sources
      1. i. Surface contamination: approximation of a disk with constant density
      2. ii. Cylindrical bottle containing a liquid source
  3. Introduction to the simulation software DOSIMEX
    1. Radiation protection concepts
    2. Practical lab (15 hours, 5 sessions)

Text references :

Teaching material is provided by the professors on the dedicated webpage https://ecampus.unicaen.fr/course/index.php?categoryid=57605

Course planning:

The detailed calendar of the course and classroom information is updated daily on the ZIMBRA calendar of the students after enrollment

Learning Assessment Procedures:

The final mark will be given through a written exam covering the course topics and the evaluation of the experimental project (one half of the final mark).

To pass the semester, you must obtain an overall average of at least 10 out of 20 in all teaching units. The individual marks are averaged with a coefficient proportional to the CFU of the teaching unit.

If you have not passed a course or course unit, a make-up session is organised. However, if you have passed one or more courses or teaching units, you retain your result and do not have to retake these units.

Design of Nuclear Experiments

Teachers:

Contact: gibelin@lpccaen.in2p3.fr

Course Structure:

The course (4 CFU) is taught in english through lectures (15 h) and teaching interactive laboratory classes (15 h). 

Attendance of Lessons:

Attendance at the course and lab sessions is compulsory 

Detailed Course Content:

Design of nuclear experiments (15h)

From the physics problem to its experimental realization. Illustration of the pros and cons of some technical choices, using recent publications in the field of nuclear structure.

  1. Techniques and detectors associated to the different kind of particle (3h)
  2. From reaction to structure (10h)
    1. the different types of reactions, in particular: Coulomb excitation, inelastic scattering, transfer reaction, knock-out/breakup… (2h)
    2. choose the right tool and the right reaction: or why a given
      reaction/detector system will or not ne suitable to extract the
      measurement of interest (4h)
    3. how to extract the observables of interest: (4h)
      1. what kind of analysis has to be done
      2. how to estimate the background (or get rid of it)
      3. can the result be model independent ?
  3. Errors estimate or how to have a constructive criticism of a
    published result (2h)

Experimental project (15h)

Design, mounting, running and data analysis of a complete detector system : focusing on correlation, mathematical/statistical tools and use of simulations.

  1. The students, in groups of three, will have to propose with the material at their disposal (detectors, electronics, sources) a small nuclear or particle physics experiment. They will have to build the setup themselves and test it before performing the measurement.  As for a professional experiment, they will have to demonstrate, through calculation or simulation and eventually preliminary tests, its feasibility. They will then analyze the data and depending on the subject, simulation will also be necessary to interpret their results.

Text references :

Materials are provided by the professor on the dedicated webpage https://ecampus.unicaen.fr/enrol/index.php?id=54189

Course planning:

The detailed calendar of the course and classroom information is updated daily on the ZIMBRA calendar of the students after enrollment

Learning Assessment Procedures:

The examination consists of a written exam on the contents of the course, and an evaluation of the experimental project.

To pass the semester, you must obtain an overall average of at least 10 out of 20 in all teaching units. The individual marks are averaged with a coefficient proportional to the CFU of the teaching unit.

If you have not passed a course or course unit, a make-up session is organised. However, if you have passed one or more courses or teaching units, you retain your result and do not have to retake these units.

Density Functional Theory and Applications

Teachers:

Contact: Julie.douady@ensicaen.fr

Course Structure:

The course (4 CFU) is taught in english through lectures (15 h) and teaching interactive laboratory classes (12 h). 

Attendance of Lessons:

Attendance at the course and lab sessions is compulsory 

Detailed Course Content:

Lectures (15h)

Chapter 1 : General background – Introduction of electronic structure calculations

  1. Introduction: Computational chemistry ; Ab initio quantum theories ; Computable properties
  2. The electronic problem:  Schrödinger Wave Equation (SWE) ; Hamiltonian ; Atomic units
  3. The Born-Oppenheimer approximation: Heavier nuclei ; Electronic Hamiltonian ; Limitations
  4. The Hydrogenic ions : Hydrogen atom : exact solution (AO) ;  Hydrogenoïds ato
  5. The Hydrogen molecule  ion H2+  Molecular orbital MO = LCAO ; Variation principle
  6. Many-electrons atoms : He atom , Approx. Non interacting electrons ; Symmetric wave-function + Pauli principle ; Slater Determinant SD

Chapter 2 : Hartree-Fock Theory

Electronic structure problem : Time-independent SWE ; BO approximation ; Electronic Hamiltonian ; Ab initio quantum theories

The Molecular Orbital approximation : Hartree-Fock theory ; Hartree wavefunction ; Pauli principle ; Hartree-Fock wavefunction ; Spin-orbitals

The Hartree-Fock equations: The HF energy ; The Coulomb and Exchange operators ; The Fock operator ; The HF equations

Minimization of the energy of a single SD. The Lagrange’s method ; The canonical HF equations 

The total energy and Koopman’s theorem Orbital energies ; Ionization potential / electron affinity

Restricted and unrestricted HF theories:  Electron spin ; Pros / Cons of UHF

The Roothaan equations : LCAO approximation ;The Self-Consistent field method (SCF)

Chapter 3 : Density Functional Theory

Introduction : Time-independent SWE ; BO approximation

Electronic structure/Motivations : Ab initio methods ; Philosophy of the DFT theory

Density functionals: The electron density ; Functional  ; Density functional

The Hohenberg-Khon theorems : First theorem ; Second theorem ; Universal HK functional

The Kohn-Sham formulation : Philosophy ; The KS energy ; The KS equations ; The self-consistent scheme ; The HF and KS equations

Approximation of exchange-correlation functional : The uniform electron gas (UEG) ; The Local density approximation (LDA) ; Gradient corrected functionals (GGA)

 Strengths of DFT / Where DFT goes wrong: Multi-reference problems ; The Self Interaction

Chapter 4 Post Hartree-Fock Theories

  1. Electron correlation energy: Problem of the mean field theories ; Goals for correlated methods
  2. Moller Plosset Theory (MPn): Many Body Perturbation Theory (MBPT); Moller-Plesset Theory (MPn)
  3. Configuration Interaction (CI): Principle of Interaction Configuration; Full/Truncated Configuration Interaction ; Problem of size consistency
  4. Coupled-Cluster Method (CC): Principle ; Truncated Coupled Cluster methods ; Advantages of the CC methods
  5. Multi-Configuration Self-Consistent Field Method (MCSCF) : Complete Active Space (CASSCF) ; Restricted Active Space (RASSCF)
  6. Importance of the Basis set : Slater-Type Orbitals (STO’s) ; Gaussian-Type Orbitals (GTO’s) ; Contracted Gaussian-Type Orbitals (CGTO’s)  ; People-style basis sets ; Dunning’s Correlation-Consistent Basis Sets ; Basis Set Superposition Error (BSSE)

Numerical projects : During the lab sessions (12h), students will perform 3 different projects using a professional quantum chemistry code (MOLCAS).

Project n°1–Koopman’s theorem

The first project consists of calculating the ionization energies of several atoms using the Koopman theorem and comparing them with experimental values. These energies will be calculated at the Restricted-HartreeFock level in the Born-Oppenheimer adiabatic approximation.The atoms studied are as follows: He, Li, Be, Ne, Na, Mg, Ar, K, Ca, Kr. RHF calculations will be made with two different basis sets: ANO-RCC-VTZP (labelled basis 1) and ANORCC-VQZP (labelled basis 2) with MOLCAS 8

Project n°2–Bond breaking in Li2

In this project we will investigate the bond-breaking reaction in Li2 molecule. We will compare the performance of restricted/unrestricted Hartree-Fock calculations (RHF and UHF) and restricted density functional theory calculations (DFT-LDA, DFT-PBE and DFT-B3LYP) for bond breaking. The ground-state energies will be calculated at the HF (RHF/UHF) and DFT (LDA/PBE/B3LYP) levels in the Born-Oppenheimer adiabatic approximation with the basis set aug-cc-pVDZ.

Project n°3–Correlation energy and Bond breaking in He2

In this project, we will study the bond breaking reaction in the He2 molecule. This molecule is much less bound than the Li2 molecule. We will compare the performance of post-Hartree-Fock theories calculations (MP2, CISD and CCSD(T)) and DFT calculation with the B3LYP functional. First, we will study the role of the correlation energy calculated by each model. Then we will compare the binding energy of the molecule (predicted by the different models) with those obtained by an exact calculation (FCI).The ground-state energies will be calculated at RHF, DFT(B3LYP) and post-HF (MP2,CISD,CCSD(T)) levels in the Born-Oppenheimer adiabatic approximation with the basis set cc-pVDZ.

Text references :

Materials are provided by the professors on the dedicated webpage https://ecampus.unicaen.fr/enrol/index.php?id=541931

Course planning:

The detailed calendar of the course and classroom information is updated daily on the ZIMBRA calendar of the students after enrollment

Learning Assessment Procedures:

The four chapters of the theoretical course give the basis for the successful completion of the three numerical projects. A written report is expected for each of them, due at the end of the course. The final mark is an average with equal weight of the evaluation of the written reports of the three projects.

To pass the semester, you must obtain an overall average of at least 10 out of 20 in all teaching units. The individual marks are averaged with a coefficient proportional to the CFU of the teaching unit.

If you have not passed a course or course unit, a make-up session is organised. However, if you have passed one or more courses or teaching units, you retain your result and do not have to retake these units.

Data Analysis and Machine Learning

Teacher:

  • Dr.Antonin Vacheret LPC UMR6534 https://inspirehep.net/authors/1023486

Contact: vacheret@lpccaen.in2p3.fr

Course Structure:

The course (6 CFU) is taught in english through lectures (20 h) and teaching interactive laboratory classes (20 h). 

Attendance of Lessons:

Attendance at the course and practical lab sessions is compulsory 

Detailed Course Content:

The rapid rise of Artifical Intelligence (AI) in the last few decades has been quite remarkable. Machine learning, a sub-field of AI has found applications in many of the tasks related to modelisation and data analysis found in Nuclear and Particle Physics data. The large amount of multi-dimensional data commonly processed can be deciphered using ML methods which in many areas have surpassed traditional approaches. Those methods enable the learning of complicated concepts and dependencies based on representation of the data.

In this course, we will take a look at the basic concept and methods of machine learning from the point of view of a physicist, exploring and using datasets that are commonly found in theoritical and experimental physics. We will gradually move from simple architectures to more advanced one and cover the most common applications and pitfall of ML with the aim of giving all the basic knowledge needed to start applying those tools.  

The course will cover the following concepts and methods :

  1. Statistical analysis and optimization of data; 
  2. Visualisation of data and embedding;
  3. Basic concepts, expectation values, variance, covariance, correlation functions and errors; 
  4. Shallow and deep neural nets; 
  5. Architecture components and current models;
  6. Classification and regression tasks; Foundation models;  
  7. Central elements of Bayesian statistics and modeling;
  8. Hypothesis testing, Markov chains, Metropolis-Hastings algorithm;

All the above topics will be supported by examples, hands-on exercises and project work.

Basic knowledge in programming and numerics is required to follow the course.

Learning Outcomes :

The course introduces a variety of central algorithms and methods essential for studies of data analysis and machine learning. The course is tutorial and project-based and through the various projects, normally two, the students will be exposed to fundamental research problems in these fields, with the aim to reproduce realistic scientific results. The students will learn to develop and structure comprehensive machine learning codes and get acquainted with computing practices and learn to handle solving scientific problems with ML. A good scientific and ethical conduct is emphasized throughout the course. More specifically, after this course you will :

  • Understand the basics about data analysis, selection and visualisation.
  • Learn the basics of building and training various type of Machine Learning models.
  • Have learned about Transformers and Foundation models.
  • Have learned how to implement statistical methods for hypothesis testing.
  • Have learned to use some of the most common Python libraries used in Artificial intelligence.
  • Have gained knowledge of central aspects of Monte Carlo methods, Markov chains Monte Carlo and their possible applications.
  • Be able to use the most common Machine Learning methods to new problems.

Text references :

  • Christian Robert and George Casella, Monte Carlo Statistical Methods, Springer
  • Peter Hoff, A first course in Bayesian statistical models, Springer
  • Kevin Murphy, Machine Learning: A Probabilistic Perspective, MIT Press
  • Christopher M. Bishop, Pattern Recognition and Machine Learning, Springer
  • David J.C. MacKay, Information Theory, Inference, and Learning Algorithms, Cambridge University Press
  • Trevor Hastie, Robert Tibshirani, and Jerome Friedman, The Elements of Statistical Learning, Springer
  • David Barber, Bayesian Reasoning and Machine Learning, Cambridge University Press

Detailed lecture notes and tutorials are additionnally provided by the professor on the dedicated webpage https://ecampus.unicaen.fr/course/index.php?categoryid=25251

Course planning:

The detailed calendar of the course and classroom information is updated daily on the ZIMBRA calendar of the students after enrollment

Learning Assessment Procedures:

The evaluation is based on two large projects which the students have to hand in some weeks after the course ends. The students are allowed to collaborate in groups of two to three students per group.

To pass the semester, you must obtain an overall average of at least 10 out of 20 in all teaching units. The individual marks are averaged with a coefficient proportional to the CFU of the teaching unit.

If you have not passed a course or course unit, a make-up session is organised. However, if you have passed one or more courses or teaching units, you retain your result and do not have to retake these units.

Basics of Radiotherapy

Teachers:

Contact: siamak.haghdoost@unicaen.fr , jthariat@gmail.com

Course Structure:

The course is taught in english through lectures (3 CFU – 20 h)

Attendance of Lessons:

Attendance at the course is compulsory 

Detailed Course Content:

  1. Radiation biology, Overview
  2. Effect of ionizing and non-ionizing radiation and radiation quality on DNA, signalling and DNA repair
  3. Mechanisms of radiation mutagenesis and carcinogenesis
  4. Radiation therapy for cancer treatments,
  5. Radioanatomy and image guidance in radiation therapy
  6. The different radiation therapy modalities, how what why , part 1 3D IMRT
  7. Mechanisms of individual sensitivity to radiotherapy
  8. The different radiation therapy modalities, how what why, part 2 Imaging for radiotherapy
  9. The different radiation therapy modalities, how what why , part 3 SBRT
  10. The different radiation therapy modalities, how what why , part 4 proton therapy and carbon ion therapy
  11. Treatment effects and evaluation / modelling

Text references :

Materials are provided by the professors on the dedicated webpage https://ecampus.unicaen.fr/enrol/index.php?id=54193

Course planning:

The detailed calendar of the course and classroom information is updated daily on the ZIMBRA calendar of the students after enrollment

Learning Assessment Procedures:

The examination consists of two oral presentations of two different papers related to the course contents and chosen during the teaching period. 

The two evaluations contribute equally to the formulation of the final grade. The presentations are  marked on 5 items of equal weight :

  1. understanding and didactic presentation of the context such that the other students would also understand 
  2. understanding of the methodology used in the paper
  3. choice of the key results to be presented and critical mind in the presentation
  4. ability to explain any limitations beyond the ones advanced in the authors’ discussion 
  5. slide format and quality of oral presentation

To these 5 points, a bonus is given if some personal research goes beyond the simple article reading.

To pass the semester, you must obtain an overall average of at least 10 out of 20 in all teaching units. The individual marks are averaged with a coefficient proportional to the CFU of the teaching unit.

If you have not passed a course or course unit, a make-up session is organised. However, if you have passed one or more courses or teaching units, you retain your result and do not have to retake these units.

Atoms and Clusters

Teachers:

Contact: jean-yves.chesnel@unicaen.fr, prousseau@ganil.fr, mery@ganil.fr, michael.fromager@unicaen.fr

Course Structure:

The course (6 CFU, 40h) is taught in english through lectures.

Attendance of Lessons:

Attendance at the course is compulsory

Detailed Course Content:

  1. Structure and Dynamics (26h)
    1. Atomic structure: (5 h, J.-Y. Chesnel)
      • General aspects for an advanced quantum description of atomic systems, hyperfine structure eigenstates and energies
      • Wave functions and energy levels of the H atom and hydrogen-like ions with relativistic correction; Application to the energy levels of alkali atoms
      • Wave functions and energy levels of the He atom and helium-like ions: spectral terms and fine structure in the L–S and j–j coupling schemes; Application to the energy levels of alkaline earth atoms
    2. Molecular structure: (5 h, J.-Y. Chesnel)
      • General properties of molecules and the main approaches for their quantum description Electronic states of molecules: Application of the LCAO method to homonuclear diatomic molecules (reminder) and its generalization to the cases of heteronuclear diatomic molecules and of polyatomic molecules,
      • Demonstration of the quantum nature of the chemical bonding, Molecular terms and symmetries
    3. Ion-atom collisions (6 h, J.-Y. Chesnel)

– Multiple electron capture in slow ion-atom collisions:

  • Mechanisms for charge exchange: monoelectronic processes, dielectronic processes & electron correlation

    1. Mechanisms for charge exchange: monoelectronic processes, dielectronic processes & electron correlationTransition probabilities and cross sections: classical over-thebarrier model, method of coupled states and its approximation within the Landau-Zener modelApplication to the double electron capture in AZ+ + He (Z=6-10) and N6,7+ + Ne collisions: projectile velocity dependence of the cross sections and identification of the capture mechanisms – Multiple ionization and excitation in fast ion-atom collisions:Ionization and excitation mechanisms: uncorrelated, correlated and shake processes, dependence on the perturbation parameter (projectile charge over velocity ratio q/v)Ionization and excitation probabilities within the Plane Wave Born Approximation (PWBA)Formation of inner-shell vacancies via ionization/excitation:
    • Mechanisms for charge exchange: monoelectronic processes, dielectronic processes & electron correlation
      1. Mechanisms for charge exchange: monoelectronic processes, dielectronic processes & electron correlation
      2. Transition probabilities and cross sections: classical over-thebarrier model, method of coupled states and its approximation within the Landau-Zener model
      3. Application to the double electron capture in AZ+ + He (Z=6-10) and N6,7+ + Ne collisions: projectile velocity dependence of the cross sections and identification of the capture mechanisms – Multiple ionization and excitation in fast ion-atom collisions:
      4. Ionization and excitation mechanisms: uncorrelated, correlated and shake processes, dependence on the perturbation parameter (projectile charge over velocity ratio q/v)
      5. Ionization and excitation probabilities within the Plane Wave Born Approximation (PWBA)
      6. Formation of inner-shell vacancies via ionization/excitation:

Application to the formation of hollow lithium ions, Identification of the mechanisms leading to the formation of the S and P doubly excited states of Li+

  1. Ion-molecule/cluster collisions (10 h, P. Rousseau) – Elementary processes: energy and charge transfer – A textbook case ion-fullerene collision:
      1. Ionization and charge stability
      2. Fragmentation dynamics – Clusters:
      3. Nature of bonds
      4. Effects of the environment: charge localization, energy redistribution, influence of the intermolecular bonds, reactivity inside of clusters induced by ion collisions
  2. Experimental tools (14 h, A. Méry & M. Fromager) I. Production, spectroscopy and detection (9h):
    • Molecular and cluster sources: supersonic jet, condensation cluster source, electrospray ionization
    • Atom and ion traps: magneto optical trap, RF traps
    • Ion and electron spectroscopy: mass spectrometers, electrostatic energy analyzers, recoil ion momentum spectroscopy, velocity map imaging
    • Ion detectors: channeltron, microchannel plates, position sensitive detectors II. Femtosecond lasers for atomic and molecular physics (5h):
    • Mode-locked lasers, CPA technique, laser chains
    • Characterization of femtosecond pulses
    • Applications: acceleration of charged particles, attosecond pulse generation, pump-probe technique

Text references :

Teaching material is provided by the professors on the dedicated webpages https://ecampus.unicaen.fr/course/index.php?categoryid=54194 https://ecampus.unicaen.fr/course/index.php?categoryid=541945

Course planning:

The detailed calendar of the course and classroom information is updated daily on the

ZIMBRA calendar of the students after enrollment. A visit of the low energy beamline facility ARIBE/GANIL and of different molecular physics setups of the CIMAP laboratory will also be organized.

Learning Assessment Procedures:

Assessment takes the form of three independent written exams of a duration 1:30 each, covering the three different parts of the course (lessons by Prof.Chesnel, lessons by Prof.Rousseau, lessons by Profs.Méry and Fromager). They consist of practical exercices

based on the tutorials worked out in the classroom. The final mark is an average of the three evaluations with equal weight.

To pass the semester, you must obtain an overall average of at least 10 out of 20 in all teaching units. The individual marks are averaged with a coefficient proportional to the CFU of the teaching unit.

If you have not passed a course or course unit, a make-up session is organised. However, if you have passed one or more courses or teaching units, you retain your result and do not have to retake these units.

Monte Carlo Simulations

Teacher:

Contact: mauger@lpccaen.in2p3.fr

Course Structure:

The course (3 CFU) is taught in english through lectures (10 h) and teaching interactive laboratory classes (8 h). 

Attendance of Lessons:

Attendance at the course and lab classes is compulsory 

Detailed Course Content:

  1. Monte Carlo simulation tools in nuclear science
  2. Use cases:
    1. detector design and optimization
    2. radiation protection
    3. inference and data analysis
  3. Decay generators for nuclear and particle physics
  4. Particle tracking and interactions in matter
    1. Presentation of the Geant4 framework
    2. Presentation of the MCNP program
  5. Methodology
  6. Practicum (using the Python 3 programming language)
    1. Use cases related to topics covered in nuclear physics practicum
    2. Use cases related to topics covered during internship

Text references :

Detailed lecture notes and tutorials are provided by the professor on the dedicated webpage https://ecampus.unicaen.fr/enrol/index.php?id=5418867

Course planning:

The detailed calendar of the course and classroom information is updated daily on the ZIMBRA calendar of the students after enrollment

Learning Assessment Procedures:

Assessment takes the form of a final written exam of a duration 1:30 plus an oral part (30’),

To pass the semester, you must obtain an overall average of at least 10 out of 20 in all teaching units. The individual marks are averaged with a coefficient proportional to the CFU of the teaching unit.

If you have not passed a course or course unit, a make-up session is organised. However, if you have passed one or more courses or teaching units, you retain your result and do not have to retake these units.

Advanced Nuclear Theory

Teacher:

Contact: francesca.gulminelli@unicaen.fr, isacker@ganil.fr

Course Structure:

The course is taught in english through lectures (6 CFU, 30 h).

Attendance of Lessons:

Attendance at the course is compulsory 

Detailed Course Content:

  1. Symmetries (10h)
    1. Symmetry in Quantum Many-Body Systems
      1. Symmetry in Quantum Mechanics
        1. Symmetry and Degeneracy
        2. Selection Rules
      2. Dynamical Symmetries in Quantum Many-Body Systems
        1. Many-Particle States in Second Quantisation
        2. Dynamical Algebras
    2. Symmetry in the Shell Model
      1. The Nuclear Shell Model
      2. Pairing and SU(2)
        1. Seniority in a Single-j Shell
        2. Richardson–Gaudin Approach
      3. Deformation and SU(3)
        1. The Collective Model
        2. Wigner’s SU(4) Symmetry
        3. Elliott’s SU(3) Symmetry
    3. Symmetry in the Interacting Boson Model
      1. The Interacting Boson Model
      2. Dynamical Symmetries
      3. Geometry
      4. Quantum Phase Transitions
      5. Partial Dynamical Symmetries
  2. Nuclei and nuclear matter at finite temperature (20h)
  1. Introduction
    1. Finite temperature, why ?
    2. Position of the problem (reminder of quantum statistical mechanics)
  2. The shell model approach
    1. Basic ingredients
    2. Thermodynamic averages with one-body Hamiltonians
    3. Towards realistic quantum Monte Carlo
  3. The density functional approach
    1. Mean field as a variational theory
    2. The bulk approximation
  4. Phase transitions in nuclear matter
    1. Phase transitions and instabilities (first order phase transitions with one-dimensional order parameters, applications: the phase diagram of nuclear matter, crystallization of white dwarfs, transition to the quark-gluon plasma in ultra-dense matter
    2. Instabilities and finite size fluctuations (applications to fragmentation and to multicomponent astrophysical plasmas)

Text references :

Detailed lecture notes and tutorials are provided by the professors on the dedicated webpage https://ecampus.unicaen.fr/enrol/index.php?id=54192

Course planning:

The detailed calendar of the course and classroom information is updated daily on the ZIMBRA calendar of the students after enrollment

Learning Assessment Procedures:

Exercices covering the different parts of the course are given by the professors at the beginning of the course, and discussed in the classroom through the different lessons. Individual solution sheets are requested at the end of the semester. The evaluation marks are weighted (1/3 for the symmetries part, 2/3 for the finite temperature part) to give the final grade of the teaching unit.

To pass the semester, you must obtain an overall average of at least 10 out of 20 in all teaching units. The individual marks are averaged with a coefficient proportional to the CFU of the teaching unit.

If you have not passed a course or course unit, a make-up session is organised. However, if you have passed one or more courses or teaching units, you retain your result and do not have to retake these units.

Physics of Medical Devices

Teachers:

Contact: rousseau@lpccaen.in2p3.fr

Course Structure:

The course (3 CFU) is taught in english through lectures, tutored exercices (17 h) and teaching interactive laboratory classes (8 h).

Attendance of Lessons:

Attendance at the course and practical lab sessions is compulsory

Detailed Course Content:

The aim of the courses is to apply the concepts and knowledge acquired in various fields such as nuclear physics, the interaction of radiation with matter and dosimetry to medical devices using ionizing radiation for diagnosis and therapy.

  1. Basis of radiation-matter interaction, chemical and biological effects
  2. Operating principle of the main diagnostic equipment using ionizing radiation (CT-scan, SPECT, PET)
  3. Challenges in radiotherapy using X and hadron, depth dose deposition, treatment planning system
  4. Therapy center and accelerator used for dose delivery
  5. Physical dosimetry and absorbed dose, effect of nuclear interaction
    1. Analytical model for dose calculation
    2. Monte Carlo simulation for dose calculation, impact of nuclear models
  6. Current research in nuclear physics aimed at improving dose control and delivery

Text references :

Teaching material is provided by the professors on the dedicated webpage https://ecampus.unicaen.fr/course/index.php?categoryid=576056

Course planning:

The detailed calendar of the course and classroom information is updated daily on the ZIMBRA calendar of the students after enrollment

Learning Assessment Procedures:

Assessment takes the form of a final written exam of a duration 1:30, consisting of practical exercices based on the tutorials worked out in the classroom.

To pass the semester, you must obtain an overall average of at least 10 out of 20 in all teaching units. The individual marks are averaged with a coefficient proportional to the CFU of the teaching unit.

If you have not passed a course or course unit, a make-up session is organised. However, if you have passed one or more courses or teaching units, you retain your result and do not have to retake these units.

Internship (12 CFU)

The students work in teams of two on a personalized project in a research lab associated to the Master. A professional researcher is assigned as a tutor to each team, and office space and computing resources are offered to them. The internship work is done during four months (September to December) part time, and it is ruled by an internship agreement. The students produce a written report and a public defense is organized in January in front of an international jury.